Egypt s Masry moved to the brink of a place in the African Confederation Cup knockout stage after a delightful strike from Islam Eissa gave them a deserved 1-0 victory over Morocco s Renaissance de Berkane in Port Said on Sunday. The diminutive winger, the game s standout performer, netted what proved to be the winner nine minutes after the restart following a superb piece of individual skill to put Masry in pole position to advance.

Egyptian giants Ahly breathed a sigh of relief after securing a precious 1-0 victory at Botswana s Township Rollers in the African Champions League on Saturday, saying they had to overcome "difficult circumstances" to edge closer to a place in the last eight. A muddy pitch meant both sides were restricted to some tame efforts until Ahly s Malian defender Salif Coulibaly made the difference with an 81st-minute goal as the team secured their second win over Township in the space of 11 days.

International goalkeeper Ahmed El-Shenawy has been excluded from Zamalek s squad for the coming season and put up for sale. "No more Shenawy in Zamalek. It was him who showed interest in leaving and we are putting him on sale," the Cairo club s football director Amir Mortada stated to local TV on Wednesday.

Bosnian manager Vahid Halilhodzic and Spaniard Quique Sanchez Flores are among four candidates to take over at Egypt following the departure of Hector Cuper, the Egyptian Football Association (EFA) said on Tuesday. Mexican manager Javier Aguirre and Colombian Luis Pinto are the other managers in a four-man shortlist drawn up by the EFA, board member Ahmed Megahed told a news conference.

The official Facebook page of Egypt s most popular athlete Mohamed Abou-Treika has published a post containing not a single word, gaining widespread interaction from fans, mostly from Egypt and the Arab region. 1 More than 220,000 Facebook users liked the post within less than 24 hours of its publication on Monday, while it also attracted 29,000 comments and 24,000 shares. "This post was supposed to contain a photo but I don t know where it went," the 39-year-old former Ahly and Egypt national player explained in a comment accompanied by a laughing emoticon on the same post, a short time after publishing it on his official, 5.5 million-times-liked page.

The Egyptian Football Association (EFA) will approve the participation of four foreigners for each club in domestic competitions this season, board member Ahmed Megahed confirmed. "Each club will have the right to register four players, but only three will be approved to be on the pitch," Megahed told a local radio station Sunday morning.

Egyptian tennis player Mohamed Safwat has gone farther than any of his compatriots in 38 years at Wimbledon, having reached the final qualifying round of the grand slam event last month. Although the 27-year-old missed out on a place in the main draw after losing to American Michael Mmoh, he can still take heart from some recent fine displays that also saw him feature in the main draw of Roland Garros after replacing an injured player in May.

Last Sunday, France – and all its domestic racial and religious politics – was placed fully on display. Les Bleus had just claimed their second World Cup, besting a gritty Croatia 4-2. They hoisted the trophy for the first time in 1998, when Zinedine Zidane led a racially and religiously diverse team that was celebrated by President Jacques Chirac as a symbol of French “unity”. His xenophobic rival, Jean-Marie Le Pen, condemned the champions as “unworthy” representatives who (he claimed) did not know the words of La Marseillaise. For Le Pen, and his rising nativist base, color meant everything and the pointedly Arab, Amazigh, black and ethnic minority composition of the team was a national affront, not a symbol of national pride.

FIFA has fined Egypt s soccer federation 50,000 Swiss francs ($50,000) for playing a World Cup warmup game during a prohibited period. No international friendlies were allowed from May 21-27 which was a mandatory rest week for World Cup players.

Ahly s new coach Patrice Carteron expressed delight with the Reds performance in Tuesday s 3-0 victory over Botswana s Township Rollers, insisting that his team won with the least effort despite being away of full fitness. "The match was so difficult, especially amid the current time and circumstances — after the return of our international players from the World Cup," Carteron said in the press conference after the match, "so the team s fitness was not 100% complete," he added.

Egypt was ranked as the second to worst team by SkyNews Arabia, following a loss of all three matches against Uruguay, Saudi Arabia and Russia, scoring only two goals through Mohamed Salah and receiving six, for a disappointing total score of -4. The result was only topped by Panama, who managed to received 11 goals and score only 2, ending up with a total score of -9.

Juventus fans gave Cristiano Ronaldo a rousing welcome on Monday as the club prepared to unveil the superstar summer signing they hope will bring the Champions League trophy back to Turin. Hundreds of fans gathered outside the Allianz Stadium in Turin from early morning singing "Ronaldo, bring us the Champions (League)" as the European competition s most lethal striker of all time made a brief appearance ahead of his medical Monday. The 33-year-old emerged from the club s medical centre to sign autographs and shake hands amid raucous chants of his name before shooting back inside for further tests.

France beat Croatia 4-2 to win the football World Cup on Sunday, handing them their second victory in the competition after a successful campaign on home soil in 1998. Following are comments, quotes and reactions from the French coach, players and President Emmanuel Macron.

Harry Kane says England restored pride during their run to the World Cup semi-finals and can use the tournament as a springboard for sustained success for a talented young generation. Playing in their first World Cup semi-final for 28 years, England blew a golden opportunity to reach their first final since 1966, surrendering a 1-0 half-time lead to lose 2-1 to Croatia after extra-time in Moscow on Wednesday.

Two nations who have been waiting years to put right the bitter memories of World Cup semi-final defeats will face each other on Wednesday in Moscow with the chance to finally go one step further. England s last appearance at this stage was in 1990 when they lost in a penalty shootout to West Germany in Turin while eight years later, in their first World Cup as an independent nation, Croatia lost to hosts and eventual winners France.

France coach Didier Deschamps is confident he has prepared his players for any tactical surprises his opposite number Roberto Martinez might spring when they face Belgium in the World Cup semi-finals in St Petersburg on Tuesday. Belgium are the tournament s top scorers, and Martinez sprang a surprise by changing his system in the quarter-final against Brazil, moving target man Romelu Lukaku out wide so Kevin de Bruyne could operate as a "false nine".

The Spanish Football Federation has appointed Luis Enrique as Spain s new national team coach on a two-year deal, the president of the federation Luis Rubiales said during a news conference on Monday. "The decision was unanimous. I like his commitment and he has turned down better paid jobs in order to coach Spain. He s a coach who completes all the requirements the Federation was looking for," Rubiales said.

Belgium will be deeply disappointed if they fail to win the World Cup, defender Thomas Vermaelen said on Sunday, in the first direct acknowledgement of the team s belief in their ability to emerge triumphant in Russia. While other players have kept up a steady mantra of taking the tournament one game at a time, the 32-year-old defender make clear his vista was firmly focussed on next Sunday s final at Moscow s Luzhniki Stadium.

World Cup hosts Russia were outsiders only weeks ago but their unexpected World Cup success has made them hungry for more as they eye a semi-final spot against Croatia, defender Ilya Kutepov said on Wednesday. Russia edged Spain on penalties in last week s round of 16 match after the Spaniards played more than 1,000 passes but failed to create any chances.

Brazil winger Neymar is a world class footballer who does not need to exaggerate when his is fouled because it does not earn him any sympathy with the fans, former Germany captain and World Cup winner Lothar Matthaeus said on Wednesday. Neymar, who has scored twice so far to help Brazil into the World Cup quarter-finals in Russia where they will face Belgium on Friday, has been sharply criticised for a string of exaggerated reactions when clashing with an opponent.

Diego Maradona wants to return to the position of Argentina coach and is willing to work for free, as Jorge Sampaoli faces pressure to resign following their World Cup travails. Speaking on his "Hand of God" television show, the 57-year-old Maradona, who coached Argentina for two years from 2008-10, said it was painful to see the current state of the national team.